Fontainebleau CIC***-W (FRANCE)

Cross country report (Saturday, 24th)

The favourite couple is on top form: "Galan de Sauvagère is as perfect as ever. He is as attentive and as loyal as always. Last year, I was so quick that I could have still won even with eight faults in the show-jumping event on the following day. Unfortunately, on Sunday he was unable to compete as he was injured. This year I was slower to ensure he would not be injured. As a matter of fact, I could have taken ten seconds less but there were 3 or 4 ski-jumps on which he could have hurt himself. The objective was not to win at all costs. If he does win, so much the better…" Once again, Nicolas Touzaint has excelled himself with his magnificent grey horse. With a clear round on the Cross-country event today, in an amazing time of 7’06”, he holds on to the lead of the provisional ranking of the CIC-W*** with an overall total of 46.4 points under his belt.

The day before Sunday’s the Show-jumping event, which will conclude this third stage of the Eventing World Cup, only two riders currently have less than 50 points in the provisional ranking. Effectively, Nicolas is followed very closely by Jean Lou Bigot and Icare d’Auzay who have only 3.5 points more than him. Finishing the Cross-country event in 6’56”, it means that he only has the equivalent of four faults more than Nicolas Touzaint before the show-jumping event tomorrow. Last year's winner of the Fontainebleau stage of the competition, Andrew Hoy is in 3rd place, with Master Monarch and 52.2 points, that is to say, less than the equivalent of eight faults away from winning the competition.

It was already clear that things would not be easy this afternoon. None of the pairs of riders and horses finished the Cross-country event without any penalty points. As Andrew Hoy said at the beginning of the competition: ‘It is very hard to finish the course here in the allowed time’. Once again the experience of the triple Olympic Champion in the team event was proved to be right. No-one managed to achieve the perfect time which was 6’40”, that is to say 570m/minute. The fastest was the French rider Erwan Le Roux/Fidji de Magne*Mili who completed the course in 6’47”. Six other riders managed to finish the course in less than 7 minutes. The Cross-country course with its huge technical obstacles, without overlooking its different ground levels has once again changed the provisional ranking after the Dressage event. Some riders had refusals on some of the obstacles mostly on the combinations such as no.13, the Jumping Video Hunter’s shelter, no.5 the CREIF’s Trunk and Peak or even no.10 the Irish Tourism double vertical obstacle.